THE best is yet to come, says superstar sprinter Salwa Eid Naser, who is set to be one of Bahrain’s leading medal hopefuls at the upcoming 18th Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, later this month.
At just 20 years old, Salwa has already had a tremendously successful career competing primarily in the women’s 400 metres.
At the age of 16 in 2014, Salwa was a silver-medallist at the Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, China and a double-champion at the Arab Junior Championships in Cairo. In 2015, she struck gold at the Asian Youth Championships in Doha and the Military World Games in Mungyeong, South Korea. Also that year, Salwa was crowned the women’s 400m World Youth Champion in Cali, Colombia.
In 2017, the then 19-year-old nearly made history by almost claiming the 400m world title, but was still the silver-medallist at the IAAF World Championships in London.
One of the most popular elite athletes on the global stage, Salwa is having the best years of her career. She helped spearhead Bahrain to overall championship in the third West Asian Athletics meet in Amman, Jordan; and she won five straight high-profile races in the IAAF Diamond League including in Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Italy and France. She has five of the 10 fastest times this year in the women’s 400m and she shattered a nearly 25-year-old Asian record only to break it again a few weeks later.
Despite all her past success, Salwa says her best is yet to come as she is gearing up for this year’s Asian Games.
GDN contacted Salwa in her ongoing training camp in Madrid and in an exclusive interview, got her thoughts about her stellar year, her love for a challenge, what keeps her motivated, and much more.
GDN: Congratulations on a fantastic season so far on the international stage. It isn’t over yet. What are your goals for the remainder of the year?
Salwa: My goals for the remaining year, starting with the Asian Games, is to get the gold medal there and hopefully lower my times. I would also like to qualify for the IAAF World Cup and see where that goes.
GDN: What is your training like?
Salwa: My training is really intense. I train a lot, but it’s fun because I have the best teammates around me and I’ve got the best coach.
GDN: You have five of the top 10 times in the 400m this year, with your top mark of 49.08s being the new Asian record. How much quicker can you go?
Salwa: First of all, I would like to say thank God; it has been God all the way. Having five of the 10 fastest times makes me really happy. I don’t really know how much quicker I can go this year, but obviously I want to and hopefully I can.
GDN: Do you think you can beat or even come close to beating the 47.60s of Martina Koch. It is a World Record that has stood for over 30 years now. Is beating it a future goal of yours?
Salwa: I don’t really know how much quicker I can go but I never underestimate myself. I always aim high. I always dream to be quicker, so to go 47.50s is my aim. They say dream big and lay out your goals, and this is my goal. It scares me but that is why it is my goal I love challenges!
GDN: You’ve been successful on the international stage from the age of 16. What has been the secret to your success?
Salwa: The secret has been hard work, happiness and my wonderful coaches, especially my new coach Jose Rubio from the Dominican Republic. My new coach has been so good to me and so caring; it makes me happy, and the most important thing is to be happy and love what you do. Sometimes it gets hard, but you have to love it and go for it. I have a passion for sport, and knowing that my mom and dad love what I’m doing is also something that motivates me a lot. And first of all, let’s not forget God. He is the front of all of this.
GDN: You’re still very young at 20. What keeps you motivated and focused?
Salwa: Being 20 years old motivates me a lot. No way you are young and you are killing it. Knowing my age and what I have already done makes me want to do more; it makes me hungry and it makes me want more.
GDN: Do you feel any pressure, knowing that you have now taken over as the face of Bahrain athletics, just like how legends Maryam Yusuf Jamal and Ruqaya Al Ghasra have done before you?
Salwa: There is no pressure. I am never under pressure. I am always calm in everything. No matter what it is, I am always calm and I’m always able to pull through. It feels really good, and yes with this great talent comes a great responsibility because everyone is looking up to you and everyone is trying to uplift you, motivate you and empower you. You also are trying to motivate the younger ones, trying to be a great example, trying to give hope to others. And going out to the world to represent Bahrain is also a great responsibility. When I go out, I don’t represent me, I represent Bahrain and the way I carry it, it really matters a lot to me.
GDN: You’re already a superstar athlete. What more can we expect from you?
Salwa: The best is yet to come. As long as I am happy, healthy, and I am injury free. I have the best teammates in the whole wide world and I have the best coach so I am going to say yes, the best is yet to come!